Police cruiser set on fire in front of Ferguson City Hall.
— Charles Jaco (@charlesjaco1)November 26, 2014
— Danielle Tcholakian (@danielleiat)November 26, 20148:00 PM: The first interview with Officer Darren Wilson is now onlinebrooklyn protest done, 3 remain RT
6:30 PM: NYC Mayor sticks up for fake-bloodied police commissionerSally Goldenberg reports for Capital New York that Mayor Bill de Blasio is not happy NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton got splattered with fake blood last night. He also doesn't think it's cool to compare Michael Brown's death with that of Staten Island man Eric Garner:"Absolutely a cowardly and inappropriate act for anyone to assault a public servant, any public servant, but particularly a public servant who is doing so much good," [de Blasio] told reporters after serving food in a Bronx soup kitchen. "I found it fundamentally inappropriate. Again, if someone wants to express their opinions they can, but that was a very cowardly act."6:10 PM: President Obama is speaking live in nationally-televised remarks in ChicagoHe admonished people in Ferguson for violence, urging them to embrace the system instead of the "short-term easy route…[and] destructive behavior." The prez also ducked having too much agency in this mess:BREAKING: Hundreds block surface entrance to Lincoln Tunnel. Police gearing up to break it up. — Alex S. Vitale (@avitale)November 25, 2014
It's not my job as president to comment on ongoing investigations and specific cases, but the frustrations people have generally—those are rooted in some hard truths that have to be addressed. Those who are prepared to work constructively, your president will work with you.4:45 PM: Noisey's Eric Sundermann talks to Killer Mike of Run the Jewels about Ferguson Among other things, the MC says we should have known for sure that Darren Wilson wasn't going to be indicted when Attorney General Eric Holder announced he was about to call it quits in September:I knew this was going to happen when Eric Holder announced he was resigning. There's no attorney in the world that holds a more prestigious position than the United States Attorney—and for him to announce he was resigning towards the tail end of an investigation shows me something disgusting was going to happen. That said, when it was read and announced, I still cried like a baby in my wife's arms. Nothing I could do to control the hopelessness that I felt, and that seeps in.The interview is worth reading all the way through.4:25 PM: Russian state-owned media mocks the USAs usual, whenever the US government looks bad the state-owned Russian media is there to crow about how awful America is. From GlobalPost:As the world watches the Midwestern suburb descend into chaos, Russia's powerful state media machine is exploiting the disorder to highlight what it's long argued to be America's penchant for double-standards, especially over the crisis in Ukraine.President Obama on — Margaret Chadbourn (@MLChadbourn)November 25, 2014
BREAKING. MO Gov Nixon.
— Charlie Kaye (@CharlieKayeCBS)November 25, 2014
4:09 PM: This Natasha Lennard piece from August is still useful in explaining the violence in Ferguson right now:Sunday night's rally may have begun calmly, but a context in which yet another young, unarmed black teen has been shot dead by police, and riot cops stand stationed to shutdown even a shadow of dissent, is not a context of peace. State violence prevails and sits heavily over Ferguson this week. Mourning residents have limited options: endure this savage status quo with quiet resignation, or, acknowledging that there is already a state of violence, they can fight back.2,200 National Guard to be deployed to the region in total to protect
— Tim Pool (@Timcast)November 25, 2014
3:00 PM: The New York Times piles onEveryone is really getting their "the criminal justice system is unimaginably fucked up in Ferguson" licks in today. Now it's the Times editorial board's turn:Just finished a more than hourlong interview with Officer Darren Wilson. No question off limits. — GeorgeStephanopoulos (@GStephanopoulos)November 25, 2014
1:30 PM: Video of Michael Brown's mother reacting to grand jury decisionWe're a bit late to this one, but (with a hat tip to Caroline Bankoff at NYMag), here's how the mother of the deceased responded to the US legal system doing its thing:Body In car near Canfield Apt's — John Pertzborn (@PERTZFOX)November 25, 2014
12:45 PM: Darren Wilson's bizarre testimonyVICE's Patrick McGuire dug into the testimony of the Ferguson cop who shot unarmed teenager Michael Brown. Among other things, this large man apparently has a strange fear of pro wrestling legend Hulk Hogan:The medical examiner didn't take photos of Mike Brown's body. Because they ran out of batteries. — Aura Bogado (@aurabogado)November 25, 2014
Elisa: I've been hit by this since the beginning, [but] you have to come full circle with it I guess. I realized I didn't want to be alone, asking people to get together, but it turned out people were already together in Union Square.What do you make of the non-indictment?
It felt like New Year's Eve. You know the ball's gonna drop, but somehow it's still a surprise. I was talking to someone in Ferguson a while back, we were all like, "You know we're 99 percent sure there's not gonna be an indictment, but there's always that .001 percent, right?" I was still holding to that.What do you hope happens next?
I don't know. I would take a really intense look at our policing policies and practices and really ask why it's so hard to have some basic transparency, decent training. I mean, you know something has to change. but what I really want is if… if in the same way Occupy taught everyone about the 99 percent, if at the end of all this, "Black lives matter!" becomes as much of a cultural thing as the 99 percent did, as part of everyone's vocabulary. I could die tomorrow.
I guess a bunch of fucking laws man, I don't know. I wanna say we can just throw the whole thing over and burn the shit to the ground. But we're not gonna do that. And if all this is legal because of some bogus law that makes it impossible for a cop to get indicted for shooting an unarmed civilian, then we need to change that law.Read the rest of their account here.12:15 PM: Key autopsy report appears to have come in just yesterdayOf all the documents that have been unearthed so far, this might be the most outrageous: a partially-redacted autopsy report from an unnamed expert upset at the way the grand jury process has been carried out. It begins:Enclosed is a copy of my initial autopsy report that you requested. My conclusions are based on my re-autopsy findings of August 16; on my review of Dr. autopsy report that I received on October 22; and on the police and medical examiner photographs, X-rays and microscopic slides from the first autopsy, and my examination of Mr. Brown?s clothing, all of which I saw for the first time on November 12, the day before my Grand Jury testimony, and which I continue to review.The letter is dated yesterday, November 24, and strongly implies a lack of cooperation from the prosecutors in charge:I have not yet been permitted to have access to requested police crime scene photographs and reports, to the results of the forensic examination of the patrol car, to the Christian Hospital EMS report of Mr. Brown and the emergency room examination of Officer Wilson, to the ballistics information, to the results of the autopsy hand swabs and fingernail clipping examinations, and to witness statements.
11:20 AM: Here's the entire grand jury testimony If you aren't feeling angry and sick enough this morning, here's 286 pages of the grand jury making its way through the evidence surrounding the killing of Michael Brown and the aftermath:Darren Wilson Testimony11:05 AM: VICE's Dave Schilling on CNN host Don Lemon's coverage of FergusonContemplating and analyzing the centuries-old wounds that created this mess takes a lot of time and context—cracking wise about how the protesters are "obviously" smoking pot is easy.In here occupying the City Hall for 28 hours for every 28 hours a black person is killed by an officer — BYP100 (@BYP_100)November 25, 2014
The Ferguson Grand Jury's decision not to indict Officer Darren Wilson in the death of Michael Brown is a miscarriage of justice. It is a slap in the face to Americans nationwide who continue to hope and believe that justice will prevail.
10:00 AM: How badly did the authorities screw up last night?As everyone knows by now, last night Ferguson descended into other chaos. VICE News reports:Following an initial period of calm, multiple gunshots rang out. A crowd of demonstrators rushed toward the area where the shots were fired, and police moved to block the street and push people back onto the sidewalks.[…]A second police vehicle later erupted in flames, with the ammunition inside popping as it burned. Multiple buildings in Ferguson—including a Little Caesars restaurant, a storage center, and a meat market—caught fire and burned. An AutoZone auto parts store was reduced to an enormous fireball spewing black smoke into the night.This decision seems to underscore an unwritten rule that Black lives hold no value; that you may kill Black men in this country without consequences or repercussions. This is a frightening narrative for every parent and guardian of Black and brown children, and another setback for race relations in America.
Officer says
— Christopher Robbins (@ChristRobbins)November 25, 2014
— New York City Alerts (@NYCityAlerts)November 25, 201412:25 AM: Documents from grand jury proceedings begin to pour outThe Brooklyn Bridge is being now shutdown by protesters. 3rd
From Darren Wilson's testimony:
— Julie Bosman (@juliebosman)November 25, 2014
— Matt Porter (@mattyports)November 25, 2014What the hell.
— Patrick McGuire (@patrickmcguire)November 25, 2014Darren Wilson on why he didn't carry a taser.
— Patrick McGuire (@patrickmcguire)November 25, 201412:00 AM: A no-fly zone has been established over FergusonIt's not exactly a surprise, but FWIW: Don't try flying a plane near Ferguson any time soon, as the FAA wouldn't like it.11:58 PM: Ferguson auto parts store set to go up in flamesThen Wilson compares his strength to a five-year old boy, compared to Brown's Hulk Hogan-esque power.
— jg (@JustinGlawe)November 25, 201411:39 PM: More reports of gunfire in FergusonAuto parts store is about to go up. Items inside exploding.
— Antonio French (@AntonioFrench)November 25, 201411:30 PM: Protests continue around the countryWashington, DC:Gunshots and fire on W. Florissant…
New York:Washington DC RT
— Kenny Holmes (@KHOLMESlive)November 25, 2014
Chicago:
St. Louis:Crowd bottled up at State of Illinois building, chanting,
— Feminist Bully (@bullhorngirl)November 25, 2014
Oakland:
Marching east on the west side of US580 Cal Highway Patrol driving east in median — Julia Carrie Wong (@juliacarriew)November 25, 2014
10:57 PM: Attorney General says feds are still investigatingOutgoing Attorney General Eric Holder put out a statement as protests were intensifying late Monday, with reads in part:Though we have shared information with local prosecutors during the course of our investigation, the federal inquiry has been independent of the local one from the start, and remains so now. The problem, of course, is that Holder won't be around to see this one through, and the bar is awfully high for federal civil rights cases.10:52 PM: Brown family calls for body cameras on copsA lot of attention is being paid to burning police cars and broken windows at the moment, but it's also important to ask what activists in the short- and medium-term want to see accomplished. The answer from Michael Brown's family is pretty clear:Holy shit someone in NYC threw fake blood on police commissioner Bill Bratton just now — J. Edgar Hitler (@onekade)November 25, 2014
This has been something police reform advocates have been saying for some time—if Wilson's interaction with Brown had been recorded, there would be none of this questioning of basic facts, no arguments over what Brown's hands were doing when he was shot, and, very possibly, none of the unrest we're seeing.Brown family statement — Mike Hayes (@michaelhayes)November 25, 2014
Either way, things look pretty scary out on the streets of Ferguson right now.Police are not deploying tear gas. They are using — St. Louis County PD (@stlcountypd)November 25, 2014
10:20 PM: President Obama just finished speaking live from the White HouseHighlights included the president asking protestors to avoid violence, as per the Brown family's wishes, and the incredible split-screen dissonance of asking for calm as tear gas is being deployed:The scene in Ferguson just moments ago — Smoke is seen being used by law enforcement to disperse crowd — BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews)November 25, 2014
— Hayes Brown (@HayesBrown)November 25, 201410:03 PM: More reports of gunshots as protests trend toward violenceWow.
— Danny Gold (@DGisSERIOUS)November 25, 2014Smashed up cop car
What sounded like another gunshot just now. Close.
— jg (@JustinGlawe)November 25, 2014
10:00 PM: President Obama is expected to make remarks on the non-indictment any minute nowStore windows being smashed out
— Danny Gold (@DGisSERIOUS)November 25, 2014
9:55 PM: Gunshots reported in FergusonAt 10pm ET, watch President Obama deliver a statement from the White House Briefing Room → — The White House (@WhiteHouse)November 25, 2014
Contractor out here told me what we just heard were shots, but far away
— Danny Gold (@DGisSERIOUS)November 25, 2014
9:45 PM: Protests continue in New York and SeattleFour gunshots just now.
— jg (@JustinGlawe)November 25, 2014
Seattle protesters are staging a
— Paige Cornwell (@pgcornwell)November 25, 2014
9:25 PM: No indictment for Darren Wilson, as expectedAfter ranting about the evils of social media—and decrying speculation ahead of the grand jury decision—St. Louis County prosecuting attorney Robert McCulloch finally announced that the cop who shot unarmed teen Michael Brown this summer will not be indicted:This is pretty remarkable. Protestors took Sixth Ave.
— Danielle Tcholakian (@danielleiat)November 25, 2014
Police Officer Darren Wilson will not be indicted for killing Michael Brown in Ferguson, prosecutor Bob McCulloch announces
— Jon Swaine (@jonswaine)November 25, 2014
— Julie Bosman (@juliebosman)November 25, 2014Suffice it to say there will be protests aplenty tonight and tomorrow as people around the country grapple with the non-indictment.9:05 PM: The grand jury decision will apparently be made public within an hourGrand jury deliberated for more than two days, Prosecutor McCulloch said. They returned no indictment.
You might say this is a sign that there will not be an indictment:Prosecutor's office says grand jury testimony will be available to reporters online at 9 p.m. CT
— Craig Melvin (@craigmelvin)November 25, 2014
Always smart — Bob Cohn (@1bobcohn)November 25, 2014
8:50 PM: Ten minutes away from announcement by prosecuting attorney, which won't be quick
8:35 PM: Tension is building as the minutes tick away before the verdict's announcementI'm at Robert McCulloch's news conference, beginning in about 10 minutes. We're told he will read a 20-minute statement, then take q's.
— Julie Bosman (@juliebosman)November 25, 2014
But of course the courtroom itself remains relatively serene:Large national guard vehicle guarding court building in Downtown STL right now — Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery)November 25, 2014
8:20 PM: Protests are picking up steam in Manhattan's Union SquareNot that there was ever a chance New York would stay out of this one:While protests grow in — Ben Kesling (@bkesling)November 25, 2014
8:15 PM: St. Louis County cops insist they're focused on safety of citizensIn case we had our doubts:
7:35 PM: New York Police bracing for protestsNew Yorkers don't tend to shy away from activism, and a demonstration of some kind is expected if Wilson is not indicted tonight.Statement from — Brian Ries (@moneyries)November 25, 2014
About two dozen NYPD moped officers mobilized just north of Union Sq. ahead of
7:05 PM: National Guard troops spotted in Clayton, Brown family issues statement asking for moment of silenceWe knew the military was on hand, and National Guard troops are apparently in the streets of Clayton, where the decision is set to be announced in less than two hours.Members of media who were jockeying for Wilson intervu were recently told that Stephanopoulos had won first rights — Dylan Byers (@DylanByers)November 25, 2014
As if on cue, a plea for calm and a moment of silence after the grand-jury decision's publication was issued around the same time courtesy of Michael Brown's family.National guard now present in Clayton where the prosecutor will announce grand jury decision — Shimon Prokupecz (@ShimonPro)November 24, 2014
7:00 PM: Governor Jay Nixon urges restraint in brief remarksAppearing at a press conference with D epartment of Public Safety Director Dan Isolm, St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley, and St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay, Gov. Nixon said very little before taking questions from reporters.Statement from — Jason Sickles (@jasonsickles)November 25, 2014
I'd like to reiterate my call for peace, respect and restraint,
— Julie Bosman (@juliebosman)November 24, 2014
6:45 PM: NYT reporting that Wilson has not been contacted by prosecutorsThe New York Times' Julie Bosman, citing a person close to Officer Darren Wilson, reports that he has not received a phone call asking that he turn himself in, as had been the plan with prosecutors in the event of an indictment.6:00 PM: Pentagon tells military to steer clear of FergusonVICE News' Jason Leopold is reporting that the US Defense Department has commanded its many personnel (and their families) to avoid the St. Louis metropolitan area due to "ongoing sensitivities" there:The advisory from the Joint Chiefs is unusual. It says the Air Force, Navy, Marines, and Army should "limit all non mission essential military activities within 25 miles of St. Louis [excluding operations in the vicinity of Scott Air Force Base] and along Missouri interstates in proximity of St. Louis until further notice."5:45 PM: Ferguson area schools canceling Tuesday classesReports are emerging that Tuesday classes have been cancelled in the Ferguson-Florissant School District, as well as at Riverview Gardens, another school serving the town. The closings are either a prudent step by local officials or an invitation for pretty much everyone to check out the response on the streets tonight.5:30 PM: Ferguson grand jury has reached a decisionA grand jury in Ferguson, Missouri, reached a decision Monday about whether to indict Officer Darren Wilson for killing Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, in August. Word began to drip out early in the afternoon that the verdict will be announced at an 8 PM CST press conference, bringing an end to weeks of wild speculation about how the black community in the St. Louis area—and the country at large—will react if Wilson is cleared of wrongdoing as many expect.The 90-second encounter between Wilson, a white cop on the Ferguson police force, and Brown, an 18-year-old who was shot six times, took the nation by storm this summer, unleashing weeks of protests. But for all the media scrutiny—some call it a circus—and attendant dialogue about race, policing, and criminal justice, Wilson has confidently been planning for his future. The officer, who's been on leave, apparently expressed optimism to allies in the local police union about his chances, and even got married—to another Ferguson cop—late last month. Wilson reportedly does not plan to return to his job even if he avoids indictment, however.It won't exactly be a shocker if Wilson isn't charged, as (white) Americans tend to love them some cops. Nine of the 12 grand jurors are white, and Missouri Governor Jay Nixon has come under fire for failing to provide much in the way of guidance to locals (or anyone) about who, exactly, is calling the shots on the ground. At least he made the pilgrimage to Ferguson Monday afternoon, visiting a local burger joint.The verdict had already claimed at least one life before it even came down: Residents in the greater St. Louis area have been arming themselves in anticipation of unrest, and one woman accidentally shot herself in the head on Friday after buying a gun. Nixon preemptively declared a state of emergency last week, with the national guard (and other federal law enforcement agents) on hand in case of violence, which the FBI says is "likely."The question is whether all this talk of militarized police and brutality will have some staying power in the national consciousness. After all, we've seen plenty of horrific cases of abuse by law enforcement over the past few decades, and somehow they all seem to fade from the spotlight. Will Ferguson be different? Does it matter that the shooting was followed by a series of dramatic incidents involving unarmed black New Yorkers being mistreated by the NYPD, America's largest police force? Ferguson also has issues of its own beyond this one death, as was driven home by news last week of a lawsuit alleging that a local corrections officer raped a pregnant inmate. But are we so accustomed to police violence at this point that sustaining more than a few days' worth of outrage is out of the question?Should jurors decide not to indict Wilson, the federal government could potentially get involved. The civil rights division of the Justice Department, which just got a new leader in ACLU lawyer Vanita Gupta, has been probing Brown's death for a while now. Gupta is best known for her focus on racial biases in the American justice system, and seems like the perfect pick to diffuse tensions in a place like Ferguson. But early reports have suggested the feds are loathe to touch this thing. Apparently what happens in Ferguson might stay in Ferguson, even if most of the country can't look away.Follow Matt Taylor on Twitter.